Continuity Recap
by Eris R. Lebeau
Summary: A 1600 word recap of Continuity.


**Author's note: **

This is an approximately 1600 word recap of my story, Continuity, intended for readers who want to catch up in order to read the sequel, Singularity.

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In Continuity...

Following the events of Into the Lion's Den, Bialar Crais awakens in a bioloid body, thanks to the efforts of Kalish technicians Gemmina (Gemmi) Delonik and Jayza Harton. From Gemmi, Crais learns that the Scarrans have recovered Talyn's data spools from the command carrier wreckage. On the data spools, they have found two instances of what Gemmi calls a "living consciousness". He and Talyn now both exist as bioloids, Crais having his former appearance and Talyn designed to look like a Sebacean man in his late teens. The Scarrans hope to use Crais as means to capture his notorious associate, John Crichton, and at their instruction, Gemmi has placed fail safe code in Crais's head in order to ensure his cooperation.

While Crais adapts readily to his new life and becomes romantically involved with Gemmi, things are more difficult for Talyn, who feels trapped inside his new bioloid body. His dissatisfaction, combined with his impulsive, often violent nature, results in a confrontation in which two Scarran children are injured. Feeling remorseful, Talyn attempts to visit the injured Scarran girl, Veena, on the med deck of the Kalish research station, despite having been banned from that area. There he is confronted and shot with an EMP that leaves him completely disabled.

When news of Talyn's outburst reaches the powers that be, Gemmi and Jayza are declared insane and slated for "assessment," a process that amounts to vivisection. Knowing her time is limited, Gemmi removes the fail safe code from Crais's brain so that he can escape. Gemmi is taken by the Scarran guards, but Talyn's friend, Veena, helps Crais to escape the research station with Talyn's bioloid body and a copy of the datachip that contains an image of Talyn's living consciousness.

Crais finds Moya in order to enlist the help of Crichton and the rest of the crew in rescuing Gemmi and Jayza. After a failed attempt to assassinate Crais, Scorpius points out that because the Scarrans have data from the command carrier, they also have access to his wormhole research. Crichton acknowledges the necessity of recovering the data spools, and Crais is able to convince him that saving Gemmi is the first step in gaining access to the Kalish research station.

With the help of Sikozu's technical savvy, Cricthon and Crais break into the Kalish medical facility where they confront Director Kidan, who is the man responsible for Gemmi's being assessed. They manage to leave Kidan unconscious and exit the facility with a severely traumatized Gemmi and a stasis pod containing Jayza's brain-dead remains.

Once aboard Moya, Gemmi exhibits behavior reminiscent of Sebacean heat delirium. Having seen a vision in which Gemmi is recovered, Chiana cares for the technician as she would a small child. Aeryn, however, belives Crais is being selfish in keeping Gemmi alive and advises that he euthanize her in accordance with Sebacean ethical standards.

In desperation, Crais enlists the help of Moya's DRD's in creating a transponder that will allow him to link with Gemmi as Talyn was once linked with him. Through the link, Crais learns about her early attempt to create a "living consciousness," a feminine AI named Ceredin. He also sees that Ceredin removed herself from Gemmi's console and destroyed her own backup datachip when she learned the truth behind Gemmi's work as a bioloid programmer-- i.e. that the data for bioloid creation is obtained by torture of a living subject. Gemmi herself had come to terms with the data collection process. However, once subjected to assessment herself, she was overcome with guilt, knowing exactly what her subjects had gone through. This guilt is the reason for her current withdrawal.

Crais explains that he and Talyn need Gemmi, and her desire to resurrect Talyn proves stronger than her self-recrimination. Wanting to revive Talyn quickly, she decides to call the main function of her bioloid creation software rather than manually installing Talyn's consciousness. That main function, of course, is Ceredin, a self-described "pseudo-consciousness," complete with a hologram reminiscent of a Sebacean woman.

Ceredin is able to bring Talyn online and is instantly fascinated with the living consciousness, whom Gemmi lovingly describes as a "frelling mess." Crais presents Talyn with yet another version of the transponder, which links Crais and Talyn to each other and also allows Talyn to communicate with Moya. Talyn, however, is still unhappy in his current incarnation and soon sinks into a catatonic state on the floor of Pilot's den. In the mean time, Crais, Gemmi, and Moya's crew discuss how to enter the Kalish research station and retrieve (or destroy) the command carrier wormhole data.

Scorpius offers to merge his own mind with Talyn's in order to create a more stable being that has all of Talyn's capabilities. Frightened at the prospect of Talyn's destruction, Ceredin manifests her holographic representation in Pilot's den and convinces Talyn to "start acting sane," lest Gemmi and Crais decide to do something drastic.

After leaving Pilot's den, Talyn is confronted by Sikozu, who promises that she can help him by installing a program on his transponder that will prevent anyone from tampering with his consciousness. He gives her the transponder, but once the altered device is in place, he finds himself a literal prisoner in his own body, which has been hijacked by a Scorpius clone.

Believing that Gemmi can transfer his consciousness to a bioloid, and hence end his dependence on cooling rods, Scorpius has the clone kidnap her. Scorpius, Sikozu, and the clone then leave for the Kalish research station, hoping to recover the wormhole data for their own ends.

Crais finds Sikozu's transport gone and receives a frantic message from Gemmi via the transponder. He and Ceredin take off in Aeryn's prowler, planning to ambush the Scorpius clone by installing an instance of Ceredin on the transport. This plan, of course, relies on the transport being unguarded when they arrive at the research station. Crais also contacts Veena, asking her to come to the docking bay.

While Sikozu searches for the wormhole data, Scorpius goes to sabotage the research station power core, leaving the clone alone on the transport with Gemmi. Still unable to exert control over the clone, Talyn finds himself an unwilling spectator as the clone uses Talyn's body to rape Gemmi in order to exact revenge on Crais for the destruction of the command carrier. Through the link, Crais is aware of the clone's actions, and he vows retribution, even if it means destroying Talyn's bioloid body.

Gemmi guesses that Talyn's awareness is coexisting with that of the clone. Through a series of cryptic hints, she is able to remind him that he still has control over his autonomic functions. Talyn is able to stop his own biomechanoid heart and shut down just in time to prevent the clone from attacking Crais as he arrives with Ceredin and Veena. Gemmi and Ceredin disable the Scorpius clone and bring Talyn back online.

Sikozu returns to the transport with the command carrier data spools, pointing a pulse pistol, but her plans are thwarted when Crichton, Aeryn, and D'Argo arrive just behind her, having traveled to the research station in D'Argo's ship, Lola. Veena destroys the data spools using her Scarran heat ray. Crichton, Aeryn, and D'Argo go after Scorpius while Gemmi, Talyn, and an instance of Ceredin search Sikozu's brain for a suspected backup of the wormhole research data. With the help of another instance of Ceredin, Crais retrieves Director Kidan and delivers him to Gemmi and Talyn, who return to Moya in the transport.

With no word from Crichton, Crais orders Ceredin to sound an evacuation alarm and then proceeds to the research station power core, hoping to stop Scorpius. Inside the power core, Scorpius attempts to use Aeryn as a shield, but she is able to break free, and Crais shoots the halfbreed with a pulse pistol. He and Aeryn then free D'Argo and Crichton, who were locked in a cabinet in the inner core. Yet another instance of Ceredin, this one installed on Lola, blasts a hole in the power core wall, allowing Crais and his comrades to escape, leaving Scorpius behind for dead.

Back on Moya, Talyn, Gemmi, and Ceredin use Kidan as a test subject and master the process of transferring a living consciousness to a bioloid. They then use their newfound knowledge to save Jayza, who helps optimize a bioloid body for Ceredin. Talyn enlists Gemmi's help in patching his sensory processing algorithms and makes peace with his current existence via his relationship with Ceredin.

In the mean time, a Scarran dreadnought has been dispatched to study the wreckage of the Kalish research station. Talyn's friend, Veena, is running sensor sweeps in search of survivors when she is accosted by Sikozu, who demands that she help find Scorpius. While they search the wreckage, Sikozu explains that she has video of Veena destroying the wormhole data, which means she has leverage against the Scarran girl. The two are able to find Scorpius, and Sikozu introduces Veena to him as "a new recruit to the cause."

Several weekens later, Crais has become disturbed by Gemmi's evasive, secretive behavior. He follows her to a location deep inside Moya and finds her monitoring the growth of an unborn Leviathan/gunship hybrid, which Pilot has named "Mina". Gemmi explains that Moya wants a child capable of defending herself and has asked for Gemmi's assistance in creating a hybrid without Talyn's instability. Crais's feelings of betrayal quickly dissipate; he becomes entranced with the new hybrid and states that she could be, "the realization of all of [his] intentions."


End file.
